Inside the Phillies with MLB.com beat writer Todd Zolecki

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I’m still trying to wrap my mind around what I’ve watched the last five games. I’m sure you are, too.

The Phillies lost last night to the Mets, 3-0. It was their third consecutive shutout loss and the fourth time they have been shut out in five games. It is the first time they have been shut out in three consecutive games since May 20-24, 1983, making the 2010 Phillies the 87th team since 1920 to be shutout in three consecutive games. (The ’83 Phillies are the last team to be shutout in three consecutive games to make the postseason. The 14 teams since the ’83 Phillies have not played in October.) It is the first time the Phillies have been shut out four times in five games since Aug. 23-27, 1974.

Thank Ramon Ramirez for allowing three runs in the ninth inning Sunday at Citizens Bank Park, otherwise the Phillies would have been shut out five consecutive games.

Five.

The MLB record since 1920 is four, which has been accomplished eight times. The last team to suffer that feat? The 1992 Chicago Cubs.

What you have watched has been remarkable. The Phillies have not scored a run in 27 consecutive innings, and have not scored a run in 46 of their last 47 innings. And while the Phillies say this is just baseball – every team goes through slumps – offenses as good as the Phillies don’t struggle quite like this.

The Phillies ranked fourth in baseball and second in the National League in runs (224) through last Friday, when they beat the Red Sox at Citizens Bank Park, 5-1. Only the Yankees (239), Diamondbacks (226) and Rays (226) had scored more. And the Phillies had played two or fewer games than the Yankees, Diamondbacks and Rays, meaning their 5.46 runs per game ranked second in baseball. Yes, the Phillies were the second best offense in baseball through last Friday. But these past five games have been a killer. They have since dropped to 10th in baseball and fifth in the National League in runs (227), and ninth in baseball in runs per game (4.93).

Only six runs separate the Phillies from ranking tied for eighth in the league in runs.

It’s got to turn around eventually. The Phillies are going to score a run again. But I thought it would happen last night. And before that I thought it would happen Wednesday night. And before that I thought it would happen Tuesday night.

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The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His Phillies book “The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly” is available online, and at Delaware Valley bookstores!

22 Comments

Has it come to this? What does that mean? The Phillies have been in a prolonged slump and they are still in first place without any danger of relinquishing their position for several days, if at all. What does sabermetrics say about their chances?

I finally got my MLB Network this past week & this is what I have looked at every night since. OOO-OOO-OOO. Hard to believe and now the only consolation I have is that we can ONLY go up from here. I Love My Phil’s and have stuck by them even through the ‘ lean years ‘ but this is making me question my own sanity. For God Sakes, somebody say something in those Charlie Manuel meetings where it is reported no one says much of anything these days. Even Utley looked dejected the last couple of nights. Bring in Happ and lets get back on track to the playoffs.

I know Charlie is a *players* manager. But his little pep talk, on Wed. night, did nada. It seems, the couple of times a year he does go on a real tangent, the team really picks it up. Let’s hope he did that last night.
As for Chase….Yes, he does always bring his poker face. But last year he OWNED Citi Field. This series he got ONE hit, in three games.
I’m not even a hockey fan, but at least we have the Stanley Cup games to look forward to, this weekend. GO FLYERS!

1 Jimmy Rollins, their leader, to return.
2. An infusion of youthful enthusiasm. To that end, play Ben Francisco in LF until D. Brown has proven he is ready. At that point, trade Ibanez to the AL ( Pay part of his contract , if need be)and put Brown in LF ( platoon basis INITIALLY) and lets see some youthful production. Ibanez is playing like his best days are behind him, because they are behind him. If Brown is as good as everybody says, he’s had enough time in the minors.

dolfanman, you are right about JRoll but Ben Francisco is a mediocre MLB player and Domonic Brown is at least a year away from being ready. He hasn’t had an at-bat above AA yet. Ibanez is still the best option in LF. He is way down the list of reasons for this slump.

Slump or no slump, the fact remains the Phillies are in first place. What is there to sweat? The pitching has been excellent without even considering the absence of Happ. Another way to look at it is even with a mediocre level of pitching and a mediocre level of hitting, the Phillies are still the class of the league. Props to the Mets who have figured out how to play in their field. To put it another way, the Mets have just had the only World Series they are going to have this year.

lunastrixae: Maybe they’re still stealing signs and they’re just not very good at it. :)

True enough, they’re still in first place. It’s also true that the last place team is only 3 games out, so they’re bunched-up. Regardless of whether they’re being shut out or not, they’re still losing and looking bad at the same time. The shut-out’s are good headline stuff, but it’s still a loss.

What is there to sweat? Since it’s Memorial Day, I’d say that baseball history is riddled with teams who were in first place on May 31 only to find themselves out of contention by Labor Day. If that Stasburg kid is as good as he is supposed to be, there’s some “youthful enthusiasm” (dolfanman) and once teams build up some confidence and can still see themselves in the race come the Dog Days, there is plenty to sweat.
Pherris reminds me of the kid in “Animal House” who stands on the street screaming “All is Well!” while the town is being looted.

I’m on pherrisphain’s side with respect to how we should view the Phil’s situation. Yeah they got shutout 4 out of the last 5 games, but would any of you feel better if the Phils had lost all of those games by a run? I think not. Losing is bad no matter what the score is. Winning is what this team is all about. It’s their biggest test so far this year, not just winning, but they will treat one another after losing like this. Will there be finger-pointing or confrontations between the players? They are handling themselves like the champions they are and will be. I refuse to panick! GO PHILS!!

As muleman pointed out, Washington is adding Strasburg this week. They are also looking at the posiibility of adding Lee or Oswalt. We know they can hit, but adding two potential all-star starting pitchers to the roster would create some excitement in the nation’s capitol.

muleman your addition of :) is welcome. I am so glad you took my criticism to heart. As I indicated before, there is even heuristic value to posting on a sports site. Atta boy, keep up the good work and you’ll earn your GED in no time, well, within three or four years tops.

Phillies win. Other than Atlanta, the pack remains 3 games back despite the Phillies’ troubles and Chicken Little running through town shouting “The sky is falling, the sky is falling” . But wait, that isn’t Chicken Little, it is….it is….it is…..our very own ………muleman.

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